Merits
A merit is some advantage, training or quality your character has that adds an extra edge, resource or some other quality or in-game bonus. Each Merit costs a certain number of points. You have 5 Merit points at Advancement 1 and gain an additional 2 on every odd-numbered advancement (so at Advancement 3, you have 7 points total). Most Merits cost 1 or 2 points, but can cost more depending on the merit's relative strength. With some merits, you can spend between 1 and 5 points. The more points you put into the merit, the more potent the merit's bonus, obviously. 'MERITS' *'Action Surge (2):' You can push your body beyond your normal limits for a moment. Once per day, you can take an additional action on top of your regular actions. *'Actor (2):' You are skilled at mimicry and dramatics. Increase your Charisma by 1 (to a max of 20) and you gain advantage on either Bluff or Perform checks in the proper context. You can also mimic the speech patterns of another person or the sounds made by other creatures. You must have heard the person speaking or heard the creature make the sound for at least 1 minute. A successful Insight check allows a listener to determine that the effect is faked. *'Alert (2):' You're always on the lookout for danger. You gain a +5 bonus to Initiative and cannot be surprised when you are conscious. Other creatures don't gain advantage on attack rolls against you as a result of behind hidden. *'Allies (1-5):' You have some kind of ally that can help your character; friends, employees, co-workers or people your character has black-mailed, etc. This could be an organization, clique or an individual. You cannot call on your allies for help more than once per game and they won't go to incredible lengths to help you. *'Anonymity (1):' You live off the grid. Any effort to find out more about has the DC increased by 5. *'Armed Defense (2):' You're able to use a weapon to stop people who are trying to hurt you. When armed with a weapon, you get a +1 Shield bonus to Defense. Additionally, once per encounter, when you would be damaged by a melee attack, you can make a single, contested attack roll. If you succeed, you may negate that attack. *'Athlete (1):' Increase your Strength or Dexterity by 1, to a maximum of 20. When you are prone, standing up use sonly 5 feet of your movement. Climbing doesn't halve your speed and you can make a running jump after only 5 feet instead of 10. *'Barfly (1):' You are a natural to the bar environment and can procure admittance to even the more exclusive clubs with a little work. You know where the best bars are in town. *'Charger (2):' When making a charge attack, you get advantage on the attack roll. You can choose to deal damage or push the target back 10 feet away from you. *'Cheap Shot (2):' You are a master of the bait and switch. You can look off in an odd direction and prompt your opponent to do the same, or you might step on someone's toes to distract them. Either way, you fight dirty. You can make a Bluff check, opposed by the foe's Insight. If you succeed, your target loses one action next turn. You cannot do this more than once to a single target per day. *'Close Quarters Combat (2):' You know that hitting someone in the face is an easy way to break the bones in your hand. To that end, you've perfected the art of using the environment to hurt people. Bouncing someone's head off a counter or a brick wall, for example. When grappling someone, you make a melee touch attack to deal 1d6+STR damage. *'Commander's Strike (2):' When you take the attack action on your turn, you can forgo one of your attacks to use a bonus action to direct one of your companions to strike. When you do so, choose a friendly creature who can see or hear you and expend one Hero Point. That creature can immediately use its reaction to make one weapon attack, adding +1d6 to the damage roll. *'Contacts (1-5):' A contact provides information. It can something like Bloggers, low-ranking police officers, drug dealers, financial speculators, etc. They do not provide services, only information. When you take this merit, you must specify who the contact is. It can be a group, a clique or an individual. They can only help to the extent of their field of knowledge. *'Counter (2): '''Once per encounter, if an opponent makes a melee attack against you and misses, you can make an attack of opportunity to make an attack of opportunity against that foe. *'Crack Driver (1):' You handle cars and other similar vehicles well. Reduce penalties for driving in adverse conditions by 1 step and increase Fuel Efficiency of the cars you drive by 1. *'Defensive Combat (2):' You can lower your attack roll by an amount equal to your base attack bonus (minimum -1) and increase your Defense by the same number until the beginning of your next turn. *'Devil's Advocate (1):' You can pose arguments you don't agree with in order to provoke a certain reaction in order to keep from advancing a discussion. If you fail a Diplomacy check, you can spend a Hero point to re-roll the check at no penalty. *'Distracting Strike (2):' When you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can expend a Hero point to distract the creature, giving your allies an opening. You add +1d6 to the damage roll of this attack. The next attack roll against the target by an attacker other than you has advantage if the attack is made before the start of your next turn. *'Dual Wielder (3):' You are proficient with fighting with two weapons. You gain a second attack as a swift action, made at disadvantage with no Strength bonus added to damage. *'Durable (2):' Hardy and resilient, you can increase your Constitution score by 1 (max 20). Whenever you gain hit points, you gain +1 more. *'Expertise (2):' Choose two skill or tool proficiencies. You gain double your proficiency bonus with those skills. *'Eye for the Weird (1):' You may not possess a wide breadth of knowledge about the paranormal, but you know it when you see it. By looking over evidence, you can determine if something comes from a normal, paranormal of Fae origin. To do this, you must make a successful Folklore check, made with advantage. *'Famous (2):' You are recognized within a certain sphere. You gain advantage on anybody who recognizes you. *'Fast-Talking (2):' You can talk circles around listeners, speaking a mile a minute with your silver tongue. You can use Bluff, Diplomacy and Intimidation interchangeably. All "marks" start at neutral, even if hostile (which means you can effectively talk your way out of combat). *'Fighting Finesse (2):' You can use your Dexterity modifier for melee attack rolls used with unarmed and light melee weapons. *'Fighting Style, Archery (2):' You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls made with archery weapons. *'Fighting Style, Defense (2):' When you're wearing armor, you gain an additional +1 to Defense. *'Fighting Style, Dueling (2):' When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons or shields, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon. *'Fighting Style, Great Weapon Fighting (2):' When you roll a 1 or a 2 on a damage die with a two-handed melee weapon, you can reroll the die and must use the new roll, even if it's worse. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property to gain this benefit. *'Fighting Style, Protection (2):' When a creature you can see attacks a target other than you that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the attack roll. You must be wielding a shield. *'Firearm Expert (2):' Thanks to extensive practice with guns, you can ignore the loading quality of firearms with which you are proficient. Being within 5 feet of a hostile creature doesn't impose disadvantage on attack rolls and when you use the attack action and attack with a one handed weapon, you can use a swift action to attack with a handgun. *'Firefighting* (2): You gain Point Blank Shot and Double Tap. *'''Fixer (1): You're someone who knows somebody. You can not only get in touch with the right people to do a job, but you can get them at the best possible price. Gain advantage on any check made to Barter. *'Fleet of Foot (1):' Increase base land speed by +5. *'Giant (1):' You are at least 7 feet tall. You are Large size, with everything that new size category entails. You have to take this as character creation. *'Good Time Management (1):' You can perform any extended checks in half the time. Additionally, you can make road trips in 3/4 the time. *'Grappling Style (2):' You are trained in wrestling or one of many grappling martial arts. You have advantage on attack rolls made against creatures you're grappling. You can also use your action to pin a creature grappled by you. To do so, make another grapple check. If you succeed, you and the creature are both restrained until the grapple ends. Creatures that are one size category larger than you don't automatically succeed on checks made to escape your grapple. *'Healer (2):' You are an able medic, allowing you to mend injuries quickly and get your allies back in the fight. When you use a Medicine check to stabilize a dying creature, they also gain 1 hit point. When using a Stimpack or Med Kit to restore hit points, you restore an additional +1d6 HP. The creature can't regain more HP from this than their max HP. *'Heavily Armored** (2):' You gain proficiency with Heavy Armor. While wearing heavy armor, you gain DR 3 against bludgeoning, piercing or slashing damage. *'Heavy Weapons (2):' You are skilled with the use of heavy, two-handed weapons. When wielding a two-handed weapon with which you are proficient, when you score a critical hit or reduce a target to 0 with one, you can make one melee weapon attack as a bonus action. Before you make a melee attack with a heavy weapon, you can choose to take a -5 penalty to attack rolls for a +5 bonus to damage. *'Holistic Medicine (1):' You can use Nature checks in place of Medicine when treating sicknesses and stabilizing wounds, or when nursing a character to health. *'Improvised Weaponry (1):' You receive no penalties for using improvised weapons. *'Inspiring (2):' Once per session, you can make a DC 15 CHA Diplomacy roll. Success allows every character within earshot to gain free Hero Point or Second Wind until the beginning of your next turn. *'Iron Skin (2):' Through rigorous conditioning or extensive scarring, you have grown slightly resistant to harm. You gain a +1 natural armor bonus to Defense. *'Keen Mind (2):' You have a mind that can track time, direction and detail with uncanny precision. Your Intelligence score increases by 1 (max 20), you always know what way is north, you always know what time it is and you gain advantage on any check made to recall information. *'Know Your Enemy (2):' If you spend 1 minute observing or interacting with another creature outside combat, you can learn certain information about its capabilities compared to your own. The DM tells you if the creature is your equal, superior or inferior in regard to two of the following characteristics of your choice: Strength, Dexterity or Constitution score; Defense rating; current hit points; total advancements or powers. *'Language (1):' You lean a new language. *'Library (1 to 3):' You have access to a plethora of information about a given topic. When taking this merit, choose a Mental skill (any skill tied to INT, WIS or CHA). The Library cover that purview. On any extended roll involving the skill in question, you gain advantage and a +2 bonus. *'Lightly Armored (2):' You gain Light Armor Proficiency. Decrease your Armor check penalty by 1. *'Lucky (1):' You gain a single Luck Point per encounter. *'Lunging Attack (2):' When you make a melee weapon attack on your turn, you can expend one Hero point to increase your reach for that attack by 5 feet. If you hit, add +1d6 to the damage roll. *'Marksmanship* (2):' You gain the benefit of Far Shot and Precise Shot. Additionally, you can fire from cover without giving away your location. *'Martial Arts (2):' You are trained in one or more formal martial arts styles. This may have come from a personal mentor, a dojo or even a self-defense class. You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your unarmed strikes and martial arts weapons. You can roll a d6 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike or martial arts weapon. When you use the attack action with an unarmed strike or a martial arts on your turn, you can make one unarmed strike as a bonus action. For example, if you take an attack with a quarterstaff, you can also make an unarmed strike as a bonus action, assuming you haven't already taken your bonus action. *'Medium Armor Master* (2):' You gain Medium Armor Proficiency. Wearing Medium armor doesn't impose disadvantage on Stealth checks. You can increase the Max Dex bonus by 1. *'Mentor (1-3):' You have a teacher who provides advice and guidance. He acts on your behalf, often in the background and sometimes without your knowledge. While Mentors can be highly competent, they almost always want something in return for their services. When establishing a mentor, you should determine what they want out of the arrangement. This can be anywhere between doing favors or "jobs" for the mentor, telling them stories of your exploits or anything in between. Choose three skills and one area of training the Mentor possesses. You can substitute Resources for one of these skills. Once per session, the character may ask the Mentor for a favor. The favor must involve one of the three skills or at least within the scope of his Resources. The mentor commits to the favor and if a roll is required, they are can be assumed to succeed if taking 10 would do so. *'Mounted Combat (2):' You are a dangerous foe to face while mounted (or on a motorcycle). You have advantage on melee attack rolls against a ny unmounted creature that is smaller than your mount. You can force an attack targeted at your mount to target you instead. If your mount is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a DEX saving throw, it gains Evasion. *'Night Owl (1):' You only need 4 hours of sleep to fully rest. *'Observant (2):' Increase your Wisdom by 1 (max 20). If you can see a creature's mouth moving, you can read its lips. You also gain a +5 bonus to your Passive Perception and Passive Invetsigate rating. *'Polearm Master (2):' You can keep your enemies away with reach weapons and other staves. When attacking with any staff or pole arm, you can use a swift action to make a melee attack roll with the opposite end of the staff, which deals 1d4 Bludgeoning damage. You can also use Short Haft. *'Police Tactics (1):' You are trained in restraint techniques used by law enforcement officers. The compliance hold grants a +2 bonus to keep restrained foes in a grapple and you gain advantage when disarming a grappled foe. *'Precise Strike (2):' You are incredibly accurate with your weapon of choice. Once per encounter, you can spend a Hero Point to add an additional +1d6 to the attack roll (total +2d6). *'Quick Draw (1):' You can draw a weapon or item as a Swift action. *'Relentless Endurance (2):' When you drop to 0 HP but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 hit point instead. You can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest. *'Resources (1-5):' This reflects your disposable income. 1 is a little money here or there, 3 is a comfortable, almost upper-class lifestyle and 5 is Bruce Wayne levels. *'Resilient (2):' Choose one ability score and increase it by 1 (max 20). You gain proficiency in saving throws using the chosen ability. *'Retainer (1-5):' Your character has an assistant, sycophant, servant or follower on whom they can rely. Establish who this companion is and how they were acquired. It may be as simple as a paycheck. They might owe you their life. Maybe they were a childhood friend. They are more reliable than a mentor and more loyal than an ally. On the other hand, a Retainer is a lone person, less capable and influential than broader Merits. They will help as an informant or assistant, but are not combatants and do not fight with you. They'll drive you around, they'll help you clean up a mess, they'll feed you information or mend your wounds, but they're not soldiers. *'Ritual Caster (2):' You have learned a number of magic spells you can cast as rituals. *'Safe Place (1-5):' You have somewhere you can go where they can feel secure. While you may have enemies that could attack you there, you're prepared and have the upper hand. 1 is like an apartment safehouse and 5 is like the Batcave. *'Savage Attacker (2):' Once per encounter, when you roll for damage with a melee weapon, you can reroll the weapon's damage dice and use either total. *'Sentinel (2):' You have mastered techniques to take advantage of every drop in an enemy's guard. Whenever you hit a creature with an attack of opportunity, it's speed becomes 0 for one turn. Creatures within 5 feet of you provoke attacks of opportunity even if they disengage or teleport away. *'Sharpshooter** (2):' You have mastered ranged weapons and can make shots that others find impossible. Firing at long range doesn't impose disadvantage and you can ignore all but total cover. Additionally, you can take a -5 penalty to your next shot but add +5 to damage. *'Shield Master (2):' You use shields not just for protection but also for offense. On your turn, if you attack, you can take a swift action to shove a creature within 5 feet of you with your shield. If you aren't incapacitated, you can add your Shield's Defense bonus to your Defense to any Dexterity or Strength saving throw made against an effect that is harmful to you. You also gain Evasion as long as you have your shield equipped. *'Skilled (2):' You gain proficiency in any combination of three skills or tools of your choice. *'Sleight of Hand (2):' You can pick locks and pockets without even thinking about it. You can make Thievery checks as a Swift action. As well, your actions go unnoticed unless someone is trying specifically to catch you. *'Spelunker (1):' Alert to the hidden traps and secret doors found in many underground areas. You gain advantage on Perception and Investigation checks made to detect the presence of secret doors and on saving throws to avoid or resist traps. You gain DR 1 to damage dealt by traps and can search for traps while traveling at a normal pace, instead of a slow pace. *'Staff (1-5):' You have a crew of workers or assistants at your disposal. They can be housekeepers, designers, research assistants, animators, cheap thugs or whatever else makes sense. Choose one type of skill associated with your Staff. At any reasonable time, your staff can take actions using that skills. These automatically garner a normal success. While not useful in contested actions, this guarantees success on minor, mundane activities. Staff is a non-combat only, so Thugs can be used for Perception (like having guards) but this doesn't count toward combat. *'Stealthy (2):' You are an expert at slinking through the shadows. You can try to hide even when lightly obscured. When you are hidden from a creature and miss it with a ranged attack, making the attack doesn't reveal your position. Dim light doesn't impose Disadvantage on Perception checks. *'Street Fighting (2):' You learned to fight on the mean streets. You may have some degree of actual training, but the methodology came from the real world in dangerous circumstances. It isn't about form and grace, it's about staying alive. You deal an additional +1d6 damage to flat-footed foes. This increases by +1d6 every three advancements. *'Stout (1):' You have advantage on saving throws against poison and take half damage against poison damage. *'Tinker (1):' You have proficiency with artisan's tools (tinker tools). Using those tools, you can spend 1 hour and 10gp worth of materials to construct a Tiny clockwork device (AC 5, 1 hp). The device cease to function after 24 hours (unless you spend 1 hour repairing it to keep the device functioning) or when you use your action to dismantle it; at that time, you can reclaim the materials used to create it. You can have up to three such devices active at one time. When you create a device, choose one of the following options: a Clockwork toy, a Lighter, a Music Box or something similar. *'Tolerance for Biology (1):' You can stomach even the most gruesome scenes. You never need to make a check to avoid becoming sick at the sight of blood, organs, etc. *'Tough (2): '''You gain +3 hit points. *'Weapon Master (1):' You gain proficiency with four weapons of your choice. *'Whirlwind Strike*** (3):''' You can make a single melee attack roll against all foes within reach.